The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-12-30
PRACTICAL PREACHING.

The Louisville Commercial calls the atten-
ton of the people to the fact that there is a
great deal of suffering in that city and that
special efforts must be made to relieve it, the
ordinary agencies being utterly unable to meet
the demand. 1t specifies instance in
which a young woman fell upon the street
sick unto death; and while this is an extreme
case, the Commercial says there is crisis that
calls for some concerted methods of relief
outside of and independent of the regular ''as-
ISOLATED" charities. The people of Louisville
should respond to this statement and appeal.
In the warmth of their religious fervor, and
with the desire to save the souls of people,
they have subscribed $40, 900 for the building
of a tabernacle in which to hold a series of
revival meetings under Mr.. Moody. With no
disposition to depreciate the necessity the
value of this movement, there will be some
thing akin to mockery in the conduct of
such service while there delicate women
starving TO death or freezing to death for lack
of the necessities of life and special effort
made to relieve them. If the people can give
$40, 900 to build tabernacle for Moody to
preach to the souls of people, there ought to
be at least an equal sum raised to preach the
practical gospel of bread and coal to hungry
and freezing bodies Unless there is, the man
ayers of the Moody meeting need not be sur
prised to meet the GOODNESS, if not the active
opposition, of that class of people who interpret
the gospel after the 25th chapter of Matthew
other large city and town in the land.
Stories of suffering reach US from every point
OF the compass. indianapolis is not free by
any means, and the ordinary work of the
charity organizations does not reach every case
by great deal. In some phases, the "organ-
ization' of charity is rather hindrance than
a help to real charity of the distinctively
Christian kind. It has tendency to cause
people to rely upon machinery and organiza-
ton. and if they give few dollars year to
the society to feel that they have done all
that they should do, and to grow petulant if
suffering is brought to their attention. The
poor we have always with US, and they
with for purpose. One purpose is to
develop Charity III INC uSdILS VI LAoSc wiz
have the ability to relieve them, and when
the poor do not answer this purpose we lose
one of the choice reflex ministries of poverty.
In this holiday season, between the Christmas
tide and the advent of the new year, it will
be we'll if steps be taken by individuals who
are able to do so to seek out and relieve the
distress that can readily be found if they
care to find it.
We do not wish to animadvert upon the
suggestion that must come to every mind
to the dislocation of things, when in a city
like Louisville, where millions of dollars
have been invested in churches that
opened only for few hours week, large
sum of money must be raised to put up a
special building in which to carry on work,
the result of which is intended to induce
people to unite with one or the other Of these
churches. 1t may well provoke the inquiry
whether something is not wrong with the
methods of church administration, or with
the methods of evangelization. 1t is not for
us to attempt to solve that problem, but it is
up for solution by those to whom it specially
addresses itself.